RIVERVIEW: Coins add up to big donation for Jo Brighton special athletes - thenewsherald.com

RIVERVIEW: Coins add up to big donation for Jo Brighton special athletes - thenewsherald.com

RMS Weekly Review V1:I23

RMS Weekly Review

Volume 1 Issue 23
May 25, 2012

What a week of me getting very little sleep.  The price I pay for being a new dad.  She has been a bit fussy but that is normal.

Tuesday was our 8th grade Career Day. To help make this day more meaningful for our students, we also made it “Dress for Success” for our eighth grade students.  We had fourteen presenters visiting the classrooms and sharing with the students.  Mrs. Lori Davison hosted a wonderful event this year.  Breakfast and lunch was provided by our own food services staff.   It was a very successful day.

Our presenters this year were:
Judge David D. Turfe
Judge Mark Plawecki
Fire Inspector Sean Payne
Officer Ed Garcia
Mr. Alan Grayson
Mrs. Christine Appling
Mrs. Hamadeh
Mr. MIke Fayz
Ms. Rasha Azakir
Ms. Ronia Abdallah
Ms. Janice Murray
Mr. Eric Voydanoff
Mr. John Prusak
Officer Geoffrey Townsend




Wednesday was our 4.0 student luncheon.  Our KAB group sponsors this and provides lunch for our students.
5th grade - 32 students
6th grade - 56 students
7th grade - 27 students
8th grade - 26 students
As I shared with our eighth grade students, it is important that they maintain this momentum going on to the high school.  All twenty-six of the eighth graders honored are currently taking advanced classes for high school credit here at RMS.  In four years, we are going to have a battle for the top ten.


Thursday night was our Science and Social Studies Curriculum night.  Fun was had by all and they ended up giving away an Ipad.

We have three weeks remaining in the school year.  It is going to be hot!

Respectfully submitted on this 25th day of May, 2012.


Jason C. Gribble
Educational Leader
Riverside Middle School


“Teachers will Teach
Students will Learn
The Data will prove that what we are doing is Right.”

RMS Weekly Review V1:I22

RMS Weekly Review

Volume 1 Issue 222
May 11, 2012


I will be keeping this short and sweet.  I am in Oakwod Southshore with my new baby girl; Marion June
7lbs 10oz
21 inches
8:48 AM
Mom and Marion are doing great.  


Eighth graders come back today.  Hopefully they had a great three days.

Have a great week.  I will be spending it with my daughter.

Happy Mothers Day!!!

Respectfully submitted on this 11th day of May, 2012.


Jason C. Gribble
Educational Leader
Riverside Middle School


“Teachers will Teach
Students will Learn
The Data will prove that what we are doing is Right.”

RMS Weekly Review V1:I21

RMS Weekly Review

Volume 1 Issue 21
May 4, 2012

Take a Stand

With 1,332,512 Other Students!

• Every 7 minutes a child is bullied.(The U.S. Department of Justice)

• 1 in 7 students is either a bully or a victim of bullying.(www.education.com)
• 160,000 students stay home from school every day for fear of bullying.(National Association of School Psychologists)

STAND 4 CHANGE WILL BE AN "EPIC" DAY.

Enough is enough. Now is the time to stand up against bullying. Join us on Stand 4 Change Day and be a part of this historic rallying point for the anti-bullying movement.
Imagine millions of students and teachers across North America "Stand 4 Change" to demonstrate their commitment to putting an end to bullying. On May 4, 2012 at 12:00 p.m. EST, that image will become a reality as we all stop, stand and let the world know that we will no longer tolerate bullying in our schools and our communities. Your participation in this continent-wide community action will show people across the globe that it is not only okay to stand up to bullying, it is the right thing to do. Together, we can improve the lives of millions of young people, and help to save lives in the process.

This was read today at 12:00 for all students and staff to hear.  For the last week, I have been going on during the morning announcements sharing that we need to put a stop to these heinous acts.  Lately, we have students coming to our offices explaining how they have been a victim of being bullied.  As administrators and counselors, a third of our day is spent investigating bullying.  So, as another positive act, we participated in this “continent-wide” event.  We know that we cannot stop bullying, but we are going to make more people aware that it is not acceptable.

Wednesday was our high school and middle school art show.  Student works of art were displayed for all to see. Mrs. Nill and Mr. Ridenour had a combination high school/middle school jazz band performing in the cafeteria.  We a had a decent turn out by our parents and community members.




To hear our band perform, click on the link. Jazz Band

Thursday, at the Coffee with the Principal, I invited Pam Miller from the American Red Cross to come and share with my group.  She did a presentation for ten of our parents on our AED (automated external defibrillator) and First Aid Preparedness.  There was some great dialog which I feel was well received by our parents.


Started today, Friday,  with a Fire Drill.  All went well.  During drills, Mr. Faletti and I stand in different areas of the building with a sign that says “FIRE” in the path or route that a class has to travel.  The purpose for this exercise is to see if the students and the staff will react quickly and find another route to exit the building.  We have been doing this for two years now and seems to work very well.  Also, on a occasion, I will pull a student out of their group and put them in another class.  This is to make sure teachers are doing their attendance once they are out in their designated areas.

Our eighth grade students leave Tuesday evening for D.C.

Respectfully submitted on this 4th day of May, 2012.


Jason C. Gribble
Educational Leader
Riverside Middle School


“Teachers will Teach
Students will Learn
The Data will prove that what we are doing is Right.”

RMS Weekly Review V1:I20

RMS Weekly Review

Volume 1 Issue 20
April 27, 2012

Monday: Washington D.C. Parent meeting.  Information regarding the trip was distributed.  12 more days!

Staff also surprised Nanette and me with a Baby Shower.  After the staff meeting, the staff enjoyed making fun of me by playing “guess what’s in the diaper”, “guess the baby food”, and “how fast can you drink out of a baby’s bottle”. Thank you to all who participated in setting this up.  It was a nice surprise.

Tuesday I had lunch with our Battle of the Books winners.

2012 Battle of the Books winners from Mrs. McMaster’s class:  Ali Eter, Fatme Issa, Kenneth Isaacson, Huda Shulaiba and Omar Eter


Wednesday was spent with our Technology Team revamping our Technology Plan and our Appropriate Use Policy.  While moving to a more “21st Century” model in education, we needed to make sure our plan is current.  I think we have developed a plan that will move us into the future.

Wednesday was Secretary’s Day.  Our KAB group bought them lunch while I sat in the office and covered for our ladies.  Some staff members had fun jabbing me about sitting at the desk and answering phone calls and stuff.  The ladies appreciated the time away from their desks and the time to converse together.  This place would not run as well as it does without the dedication of Debbie, Carol, Lola, and Jill.  Thank you for all you do.


Thursday I spent the morning with our Special Education teachers investigating some researched based programs that will service our special needs better.  There are other schools in the area that are using this program and showing success on the MEAP.  Other states are using this program as well.

Thursday was also our afternoon Parent-Teacher conferences.  While not looking at our numbers, I think we have had a larger turnout in the past.  While discussing this with our school improvement team members, we would like to look more closely at the calendar for next year and have our P/T conferences fall on dates that we are issuing progress reports and not “piggybacking” on when other schools are are having theirs.  We feel that contributed to the lower numbers yesterday as the high school had theirs at the same time.

For Staff Appreciation Day, I bought them lunch.  Knowing that we had P/T conferences, I wanted to make sure the staff would be back in time from lunch to meet with the parents.  I had two six-foot subs and a large greek salad in the library for them.  Carol and Debbie also supplied other snacks.  It worked out well for everyone.

Friday was a day of meeting with teachers and attending IEP’s.  Nice quiet day so far.  (knock on wood)


Next Week’s Activities:
Monday – LA Curriculum Night/Book Fair
Tuesday – Picture Day
Wednesday – Art Show
Thursday – Coffee W/Principal (Red Cross First Aid & Emergency Preparedness Workshop)



Respectfully submitted on this 27th day of April, 2012.


Jason C. Gribble
Educational Leader
Riverside Middle School


“Teachers will Teach
Students will Learn
The Data will prove that what we are doing is Right.”

RMS Weekly Review V1:I19

RMS Weekly Review

Volume 1 Issue 19
April 20, 2012

We’re Back!!!

25 more days until Baby Gribble makes her way into the world.  It has been BUSY at the Gribble house the last couple of weeks.  I know. I know.  This is just the beginning.

Speaking of weeks.  The first week back after break is always a doozy.  I cannot imagine why, but students forget what the expectations are at school when they return.  By Wednesday, things started to settle down and return to the status quo.

Monday, the math teachers met to discuss calculators.  Currently, we are using six different calculators in our building.  Which means, students have six different calculators that they need to learn on.  We want to simplify that process and have the students learn on just one calculator the four years that they are with us.  Now, if they do happen to get into the ninth grade algebra course in eighth grade, they will be learning to use a graphing calculator.  But, for the purpose of math functions, instruction, and for using on the MEAP, we want our students to get familiar with one calculator instead of six.  That way, we are not spending time teaching the functions of the tool.  The students will be comfortable with the tool prior to them walking into the classroom or sitting down to take the MEAP.

Tuesday night at our KAB (PTO) meeting, we honored our volunteers by providing them with a snack for their meeting and letting them know that they are O”fish”ially Awesome; this being National Volunteer Recognition Week.




Our School Improvement Team met on Wednesday.  It was a day of DATA CRUNCHING.  The goal for the day was to finish our CNA (gap analysis) report.  Except for our perception data, we were able to meet our goal.  We have two meetings scheduled for May.  The would like to have everything done before the first of June.

During our meeting, NWEA and their MAPS assessment tool was brought up again and the reasons for using that assessment.  We need something concrete that will thoroughly assess the students abilities.  We all agree that our common assessments are not the strongest benchmark for us to measure our students growth.  With the onset of the Common Core in the horizon, we are in need of a national assessment with common norms.   The data that the MEAP test gives us is not beneficial to us.  It does not give us or allow us to see the areas that we need to improve.  While we focus our SIP goals on reading, writing and math, we need a tool that will truly give us feedback on what we are teaching in the classroom.  NWEA has the research to show that schools that use the MAPS test  have shown improvement on the state’s standardized assessment; we all want that. In addition, it also serves as a tool for administrators for evaluating teachers.

Speaking of students achievement, I had my four co-teachers attended a presentation by Mr. Reed and Mr. Tafelski today regarding the Coaching model in their special education classes.  I feel strongly about moving in this direction.  As my quote below states, their DATA over the last three years proves that when you focus on student achievement, good things will happen.  With that being said, we are looking at incorporating the Coaching model here at Riverside next year.

Today is also Friday Fun Day for our students.  As always, it is very well attended.

Everyone have a great weekend.

Respectfully submitted on this 20th day of April, 2012.


Jason C. Gribble
Educational Leader
Riverside Middle School


“Teachers will Teach
Students will Learn
The Data will prove that what we are doing is Right.”

MS Weekly Review - V1:I18

MS Weekly Review

Volume 1 Issue 18
April 5, 2012

SPRING BREAK!!!!!!

Unfortunately, I am on travel restrictions so I will not be in the condition my friend is over here with the sunburn.  I will be trying to get in some golf, watching the Masters, and preparing to go turkey hunting before the baby is born.


This week came and went. It was as good as could be expected with just under 1100 middle school students.   Surprisingly, as I look out my window at 3:12 p.m., the front lot is clear already.

At Monday’s staff meeting, we held a brief going away/retirement party for Chris Howes.  She has had a positive impact on so many students over the years and will be greatly missed .She is having hip surgery over the break and then retiring.    We wish her luck with her surgery and a happy retirement.

Tuesday was a great day of “Brainstorming” with the administration team.  The motivation behind the team to focus on student achievement and content proficiency gives me goosebumps.  We are all on the same page and are not afraid to think outside the box and try new things.  NWEA is a major undertaking.  If we strongly believe that our decisions are based on quality data, this instrument will be the driving force on those decisions.  The data/feedback that this assessment tool will provide, not just for the teachers but the students and the parents, with its “dashboard”, will assist all stakeholders with a tool to increase student achievement and reinforce exceptional teaching practices.  Also,  we are looking at a means of closing the achievement gap for our middle school students.  Whereas we have raised the bar for achievement, we have many students still struggling to reach that height.  We are tossing around the idea of creating an alternative placement school for our sixth through eighth graders.  Not just focusing on the behavior aspects of alternative education, but also looking at the combination of academic and behavior.  My project over Spring Break is to research if there are  any alt. ed. programs out there for middle schoolers and see how we can incorporate that into our system.  I understand that students do not always learn in a “four walled” environment.  This will be our chance to look at a positive alternative to help our students become successful.

Thursday was another successful Coffee with the Principal.  I had thirteen parents attend.   Topics of discussion:

• Next month’s agenda - First Aid training
• RESA Science summer programs
• SRI scores
• during Spring Break, have a book in your child’s hands instead of the electronic device
• Visit from Mr. Brian Spitbergen, Drug Awareness speaker from Growth Works

Respectfully submitted on this 5th day of April, 2012.


Jason C. Gribble
Educational Leader
Riverside Middle School


“Teachers will Teach
Students will Learn
The Data will prove that what we are doing is Right.”